Inspection
by Don't Mess With Aria
Summary: Shep walks in one Garrus during some private ... recreational time ... if you know what i mean. Yes, it was for a prompt on the kinkmeme.


AN: Most of this was way too smutty to post here, but feel free to read the complete version at AO3: /works/671329

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Garrus calibrated, anxious. She usually came by before now. Maybe she was busy. Maybe she was avoiding him, since she'd walked in on him calibrating something _very _ different yesterday. Maybe - Garrus paused his work to listen carefully for a moment. Oh, good, she wasn't avoiding him; she was outside the door to the main battery. He pushed a few buttons on his visor, picking up her heart rate. Seemed nervous. Well, that might be good. Depending on whether –

Garrus whirled back around as the door opened, appearing to concentrate on his work as Shepard entered. She settled on her usual bench, both watching him and trying to appear as if she wasn't. Garrus tried not to smile; he had her.

"Need me for something?" he asked, watching her squirm out of the corner of his eye.

"Just … thought we might talk." Shepard let her glance roam around the room as he turned to face her, letting her eyes land on the ceiling, the floor, the electronic panels, and everywhere that wasn't Garrus Vakarian himself.

"We can talk," he replied, wondering how he was going to get this back on track. His hand came up to rub at a kink in his neck, and he had an idea. "Hard to deal with all the stress on a mission. We have a very different way of dealing with it on turian ships."

_Take_ _the_ _bait_, _Shep_.

"Oh? How's that?" she asked, finally looking right at him.

"Turian ships have fewer personal restrictions. Our commanders runs us tight, but they know when we need to blow off steam. We have training rooms, combat sims, even full-contact sparring … whatever we need to work off stress." He put extra emphasis on "whatever we need," loving the way her cheeks pinked.

"So, what, you just beat the crap out of each other before missions?"

"Sometimes. Helps work out disagreements without actual fighting. I remember before the one mission … very risky, had everyone tense. This recon scout and I had been at each other's throats. She suggested we settle it in the ring."

"I assume you took her down gently?"

Garrus tried not to grin. He had her right where he wanted her. "Actually, she and I were the top hand-to-hand specialists on the ship. I had reach, but she had flexibility." He shook his head, almost forgetting the point of the story as he remembered the actual fight. "It was brutal. After nine rounds, the judges finally called it a draw. Lot of unhappy bettors in the training room. We, ah … ending up holding a tie-breaker in her quarters. I had reach, but she had flexibility. More than one way to work off stress, I guess."

Shepard was squirming uncomfortably again. She avoided looking at him as she made her offer. "We could … maybe work off some stress?" she asked.

"A spar? Sure, Shepard, any time."

"That's not what I mean and you know it," Shepard grumbled. She opened her mouth to say something, then snapped it closed and started to walk away.

"Shepard," Garrus said, stopping her. "I know what you meant. I do mean it. Any time."

"Oh." He started at her intently, memorizing the way the blush crawled up her cheeks. He'd never seen Shep out of her element, anything less than fully in control of every situation. He was the only one who could make her so unsure of herself. "We'll, uh … discuss this more later?" she asked in a whisper.

"Of course," he said. Shep nodded and started to head for the door again. "Just as soon as you've passed your inspection," he added.

Shepard froze, turning slowly to face him. "What?"

"Oh, I wasn't joking about that. Turnabout is fair play, you know."

"Who says I play fair?"

"You don't. But you'll play fair with me," he told her. He lifted his chin. This wasn't just about the inspection, although she might think that. He wasn't going to be just a dirty little fling for his commanding officer; he was an equal and would be treated as such. If she wanted him, she'd better want all of him.

Shep's eyes widened in understanding and she blushed again. "I don't … I'm not sure … Let me think about it, okay?"


End file.
